Michael
by Elashor
Summary: The Junior Deputy Michael Rook was never normal, but he never knew how much others might treasure his gift until he met Joseph Seed.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

* * *

 **Rook's POV**

Rook subconsciously knew long before he was ready to recognize it, that something was different about him compared to the other kids his age. Perhaps, even different to the adults in his life as well.

For as long as he could remember, he heard whispers. Whispers that _told_ him things, things no one else knew. Like how the man down the street was cheating on his wife and had another family squirrelled a county away kind of things. Rook also learned to keep these things to himself rather quickly, especially after confronting the mans unsuspecting wife with the information the whispers provided and how they all reacted to the news.

Rook knew then on to keep the information to himself, to disguise the whispers information with coincidental evidence as to hide the why's or how's he knew things. He claimed that he overheard the man talking on the phone to his mistress and thought the information he was providing didn't match up and wanted to make sure the wife knew that he was lying about his work plans, that he was actually going to be visiting his secret family. The adults were quick to jump on that excuse. They didn't want to believe that something was _odd_ about little Rook, that perhaps he needed to be tested.

No, they were content to look the other way even when the excuses were poor and that he was always _right_ about things.

Rook grew learning to hide the vacant expressions as much as he was able when the whispers communicated with him. Just said he was daydreaming about what to do with his holidays or what to buy his parents for Christmas, those sort of things when a new face asked.

His parents tried to be supportive of him, for even Rook could admit he wasn't the easiest child to raise. He always _knew_ things, was very mature from a young age and independent. So his parents did the best they could, his father being a hunter and serious prepper taught him as much as he could to be able to survive on his own because he always believed Rook when he would mumble things in his sleep. Mumbling about who's time was up and would be moving onto the next life.

His father found a kind of comfort in that, listening to his son mumble or chatter away with the whispers while his mother grew distant. Eventually she would leave her crazy son and indulgent husband to fend for themselves. One night his mother tucked him into bed and even kissed his forehead, something she hadn't done since he was a very small child and by the next morning she was gone.

His father woke him up for breakfast and as they sat around their small dining table, his father reached out and held his hand.

"Rook, son. Your mother may have left us, but never think I would leave you."

That was the last they ever talked about his mother. She never called, never sent a letter and soon enough they learned to forget the woman who used to be a big part of their lives. As the years went by, Rook was homeschooled and tutored through the old beaten up computer in the lounge room where his father could keep an eye on him as he fiddled with guns or hunting supplies.

Rook grew to take on the features of his mother and while it was never said, he knew his father missed his absent wife. Now ex wife as she had sent the divorce papers only a month after she abandoned them. Rook would stand in front of the bathroom mirror and trace the features his parents blessed him with. All the while the whispers comforting him in his echoing sadness when his eyes would meet in the mirror and see one of them a bright blue that used to peer at him with love out of a soft warm face and sing him lullabies when he was just an infant. His other eye mirrored his fathers, forest green like the woods that surround Hope County, and he found comfort in knowing that his eyes weren't solely his mothers. He was the best part of both.

Rook never grew his dirty blonde hair out too long, wasn't practical as his father would say. He only grew it out long enough to thread the odd leaves or feathers he found when he went out hunting with his father. His father would watch over the small campfire indulgently as his son would thread parts of the animals they hunted into his hair. Tiny bones, leaves and feathers.

"You have to honor all of them, son. Never waste what the land provides."

Soon enough he was sixteen and was granted early enrollment into the police academy and spent his days in the county's sheriff office learning from the deputy's how they looked after their little county. His father had died shortly after he was accepted and Rook knew that his father only waited that long to make sure that he had a way to support himself besides hunting. Because taxes don't pay themselves.

It was early one morning that the whispers woke Rook with a warning that sent shivers of dread through him. The whispers had from time to time mentioned vaguely of something called the 'Collapse', but it was always so vague that Rook would brush it off as one of the random things they always mention in passing that has no relevance to his day to day. However, Rook knew that today the whispers spoke true. Their voice louder than before and insistent. Tugging at his mind, forcing him to _listen_.

Head tilting back, eyes unfocussed Rook listened for the first time in years. He _listened_.

 _A man will lead the White Horse onto the land of the Prophet and so the Collapse shall begin.  
_

* * *

 _A/N: This is my first Far Cry fanfiction and I'm taking creative license to it, obviously. This is a fanfiction after all so it won't be canon.  
_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two  
**

* * *

 **Rook's POV**

 _A man will lead the White Horse onto the land of the Prophet and so the Collapse shall begin._

… _onto the land of the Prophet….._

… _.Collapse shall begin….._

Rook got ready absentmindedly as those words the whispers spoke rolled over and over in his mind. Leaving him feeling like a livewire brushed his body instead of the water he showered with this morning. He didn't realize it but he got dressed in his hunting gear instead of the usual police uniform, strapping up his forearms and legs before hiding the hunting knives his father gave him on his sixteenth birthday. He wondered if his father got whispers too now, because he would in the past gift him with something he needed long before he realized he needed it.

… _.Collapse shall begin…_

Shaking his head, Rook tried to ignore the persistent itchy feeling over his shoulder blades that popped up only a few days ago. He inspected his back but found no signs of irritation or wounds that may have lead to the feeling and shrugged it off as bad feelings connected to the whispers.

He skipped breakfast and made his way down to the sheriffs office. However when he arrived there, there was a vehicle he didn't recognize parked out front.

"Morning, Rook!" hopping out of the truck next to him was Staci, though the whispers liked to call him 'Peaches'. Rook always caught himself before he called the man that, feeling like the name wasn't his to say.

"Morning."

He watched as Staci looked him over, smiling. "See your going hunting after the arrest, huh Rook?"

"Arrest?"

"Yeah," Staci nodded and walked with him into the office. "the arrest of Joseph Seed is happening today, remember? The big old Marshal from Washington is here with the documents and everything!"

Staci walked ahead of him to open the Sheriffs office door for Rook, something he always insisted on doing. They walked into the office to see the Sheriff standing behind his desk conversing with a dark skinned man dressed in tactical equipment. Hearing the door open, the Sheriff looked up.

"Ah Rook, here at last. Here's the Marshal I was talking about yesterday. We leave in an hour."

 _A man will lead the White Horse onto the land of the Prophet and so the Collapse shall begin._

Fuck.

* * *

 **Sheriff POV**

He knew taking Rook on was going to cause issues when the Marshal arrived. He was sixteen almost seventeen and he was sure that in the good old Washington police departments that was too young. But here in Hope County, the age of the boy wasn't a huge issue. The crime in this county was low and the crimes that were committed was more along the lines of petty theft and minor drug use. Nothing like the high risk crime in other States or County's. For that, he was grateful.

No matter the boys age, he was capable if a little spacey. But that wasn't detrimental to his ability to perform the duties expected of a Junior Deputy. If anything, the boy was more than capable to run the Sheriffs Department single handedly. He didn't know how the kid did it, but he seemed to know when all the drug dealers were re-supplying and passed that information onto him and they made their busts. If Rook was any less capable, he would be suspicious over how the boy got the information, but wasn't worried as his father was a good man and raised a capable son.

Now onto the Marshal however, was kicking up a stink over the lack of resources and that fact that they were taking along a sixteen year old on an important arrest.

"Marshal, I'm going to stop you there." holding up his hand, he wished for patience and silence from the fuming man in front of him. "I know the boy is young, don't need to remind of that. But as I told you before you decided to turn up with the warrant, we don't have the resources you want to perform this arrest. So we're the best you've got for backup in Hope County. If that was a problem for you, you should've brought more than just yourself as protocol would've told you - "

The clicking of the door opening cut him short as the boy he was mentioning and Deputy Staci made their arrival. Shooting a quick glare at the Marshal to keep quiet, he informed them to prepare to leave in an hour. The helicopter was prepped and ready to go, they just needed to gear up.

Looking over Rook however, looked like the kid was already ready to go, despite the lack of uniform he was ready to go in hunting gear. All the kid needed was the bulletproof vest to cover the cameo and he was uniform enough to go.

* * *

 **Rook's POV**

Rook was glad the Sheriff let him wear his hunting gear, though he did insist to wear the Departments bullet proof vest so as not to break too many more procedures. Though why the Sheriff bothered to pretend he followed them in the first place must have been due to the Marshal being here.

T _he Marshal must have been giving the Sheriff grief over my being here_ ….Rook knew that he was young, too young to be an active member of the police force, but knew that in Hope County they were less likely to make a point of it, however a Marshal from Washington was sure to point that out. He already had, making a point to show the 'kid' the footage that lead to the drafting of the investigation and ultimately to the issue of the warrant clenched in the Marshal's fist.

The Marshal thought that showing Rook a video of the infamous Joseph Seed or as most like to call him 'The Father' poking out someone's eyes for "betraying" the flock was going to make him back out, the man was mistaken. Even without the whispers, Rook knew he needed to be there for the arrest.

The helicopter flew past a monument of Joseph, causing a mixture of reactions in the occupants. Some were fearful, disgusted or cautious. Rook found himself hearing the whispers again;

… _onto the land of the Prophet…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three  
**

* * *

 **Rook's POV**

 _The land of the Prophet indeed_ …Rook took in the sights before him as the helicopter made the last few inches before landing solidly. It had rained the past few days so what was most likely densely packed soil had turned to mud, fires had been lit to provide Joseph's followers warmth as they kept vigil around the perimeter.

The atmosphere was tense and Staci made sure to stick close beside him as they followed the Marshal up to the closed church doors. The reassurances from Hudson didn't make Rook feel any better, he felt the itching on his back intensify and found himself shifting around. The Sheriff placed a hand on his shoulder to comfort him, thinking his shifting was nerves and sought to give him comfort to prepare for what was to happen next.

"Now we do this my way, we don't want bloodshed…" The Sheriff was once again trying to reason with the Marshal but Rook found himself distracted by the drifting voices coming from inside the church as well as the ones drifting around in his head.

 _Yes! Yes!_

 _The Prophet!_

 _The Father of the Eden!_

So distracted was he, that Rook just found himself being pushed inside the church by Hudson and followed after the Sheriff and Marshal. Hidden by the shifting of light, Rook could only make out the barest of figures standing center stage up ahead. Rook's head started to buzz and he felt his body become weightless, the ever present itching on his upper back intensifying even more. It felt like something was beginning to push at his skin, ready to break the final layer apart to release something that had been hidden within.

"Joseph Seed! You are under arrest!"

Rook stood back and watched detached as the Marshal held up the warrant while maintaining one hand on his sidearm, the Sheriff trying to diffuse the situation as the members of the church rose out of their pews and began to encircle them.

"Go, God will not let them take me!"

The ragged people who loomed over him so were making their way out of the church, passing Hudson. With them gone, Rook slowly turned his attention back to the front of the church. He noticed the three figures standing behind Joseph.

 _His Heralds._

 _Brothers and Sister of not blood._

The whispers spoke up, whispering information in his ears as he analyzed each of the Seed siblings in front of him, not noticing the way Joseph was staring at him intently or the way all of the Seed siblings seemed intent on focusing on him. Rook felt the skin on his back ripple, stretching taught as Joseph stepped closer. He couldn't bring his eyes to focus on the present as he felt the whispers force his attention elsewhere. Their voices rose in intensity and clashed against each other, so eager to pass on their message they ignored that they consumed his vision and left his eyes vacant in the middle of the church. Left him blind to the looks of alarm and wonder on the faces around him.

 _The Collapse is coming._

 _The Beginning of the End._

 _You will help the Prophet bring about Eden._

"Cuff him, Rook!"

* * *

 **Joseph's POV**

He knew they would come for him and his flock, but he didn't think it would be this close to the Collapse. He stood before his congregation, his children and began to preach to them the wonders of Eden and how they will be saved through Atonement.

When the church doors were ripped open by the authorities he did not stop his sermon, though he did make an effort to scan over their faces to see if they were redeemable. For they were all just following the orders of corrupt politicians, perhaps after Atonement their Sin will be washed away and replaced by Forgiveness as he was not permitted to judge them, only to help them reach their Atonement and potentially enter the paradise of Eden to be saved.

His brothers and sister stood up behind him, supporting him as their children left the church upon his orders for he did not need them present for what is about to occur. He knew they wanted to take him away, the Marshal made that very clear. Standing aggressively with one hand holding the warrant while the other clutched at his service weapon. Perhaps it would be best to leave the Atonement of that one to Faith. She had a way of getting through men like the Marshal. Perhaps he could be redeemed. It was clear that the Sheriff didn't want to be here and kept nervously glancing back behind him, trying to shield a figure from his gaze.

"Cuff him, Rook!"

The one hidden behind the Sheriff stepped forward, though their gaze was vacant. Joseph stepped towards him, arms held out ready to be cuffed, as he studied the young man. No, boy in front of him. It seemed that they had corrupted another young soul, one far too young to be in the police force and their greed knew no bounds. The child couldn't be any more than seventeen, possibly younger and dressed in hunting gear that looks well worn. His hair in disarray and threaded with strings of tiny bones and feathers, but it was his eyes that caught Joseph's attention. A beautiful mismatch of blue in one eye and green in the other, a rare thing to see in this part of the world. His gaze not on the world in front of him, but elsewhere. Focused on something beyond his view.

"Rook!"

The Marshal and his annoying yelling didn't distract the boy from his vision and Joseph found himself stepping even closer as he felt something huge was to occur, perhaps he had found another who sees of God's vision? Another who Joseph could teach and learn the words of God from, how that would benefit them in the Collapse. To have another who saw as he did, who could pass on their message like his brothers and sister.

He continued to watch and as the Sheriff took startled steps towards the boy as he began to buckle and scream. The boy crumpled to the floor and writhed in agony, Joseph longed to kneel down to help the boy but the Marshal pushed him aside and knelt with the Sheriff trying to rouse a response from the screaming boy.

"Oh my God, Rook!"

Joseph stepped back into his brothers and watched as the boy continued to writhe and scream on the church floor.

"What is wrong with him, Joseph?" it was rare for Jacob to show concern, but Joseph turned towards his brother with a smile.

"While he is suffering right now, he will become - "

He was cut off when the boys screaming reached a crescendo and something ripped its way through the boys back and threw the Sheriff and Marshal aside as they were within reach. Blood splattered across the pews and floor and all was silent except for the ragged breathing and whimpering of the boy.

Joseph looked on shocked, he knew the boy may have been chosen by God to spread his message just as he had been chosen, but he did not expect what was in front of him. Beneath the hazy light spilling through the churches only window high above them lay the boy, nay an angel. Covered in blood and fluids the young angel lay crumpled near his feet, whimpering through the pain his transformation has left.

Before Joseph could get too close to the boy, he found his arms ripped from his sides and cuffed. The Marshal had recovered from the throw and he saw the Sheriff trying to lift the boy.

"I don't know WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED! But you are coming with me!" Joseph let himself get dragged by the Marshal, his sole focus on the limp form draped over the Sheriffs arms as they made their way to the helicopter. The female deputy frantic over trying to clear the way and keep an eye on the boy.

"What happened?! I heard screaming! Is that Rook?!" as they reached the helicopter, Joseph was shoved inside behind the seat of the pilot and the limp body was placed down in front of him, the Sheriff buckling the boy in as much as he was able around the wings curled over the boys shoulders.

"God will not let you take me." _nor will he let you take the angel_ , Joseph left unsaid. He didn't want to draw attention to his fixation on the boy, because he knew that if he did they would be so much more intent on keeping them separated.

The children broke their line and began to run for the helicopter, clinging onto the sides and climbing up over the windshield, doing everything in their power to stop the Sinners from taking their Father. Joseph closed his eyes to say a prayer for the child who threw himself into the rotors to save him. Thanking the soul for his sacrifice.

He fixed his attention on the angel in front of him as the helicopter began to crash through the trees, all the while ignoring the screams of the other passengers. So fixated he was on the soft angles of the new angel God blessed them with.

 _God has blessed me with a reward for my sacrifices, descending one of his Angels to earth to help herald the future of Eden._


End file.
